#edited it and then got it kicked out of tags .. sorry Explore tagged Tumblr posts

[cutesymiku]

Bloodmoonmoth

— a gender under the gendermoth system related to blood, the moon, and moths

day 2 in @bloodivine's coining event | blood or gore

Tagging :: @cherrymogai

[emptymasks]

They're done! I really want to try and make prints again as it's been years and I've never felt like I was very good at making whole posters. Dipping my toe back in with these silly chibis of each Papa with every Ghoul they've had. Perhaps they can also work as a guide for those wanting to learn all the characters? I added in a fair amount of little references with the Ghoul's poses so it'll be interesting to see what you guys figure out and notice!

The prints are on pre-order and won't ship out until November. I've put up 25 of each to start with but if they get low on stock I'll keep adding more until I have them printed and then it'll be a set amount in stock.

Also a reminder about the stickers of every Ghost Papa and Ghoul that I made earlier this year that are also available as customisable badges! Thank you so much to everyone who already bought them and got Etsy to list them as a 'bestseller' for a while. They're still up and in stock.

EDIT: someone informed me Delta was not in Secondo's era so sorry little water ghoul but he got edited out of that drawing.

Characters featured on the prints and are also available on stickers and badges: Papa Emeritus I / Primo, Papa Emeritus II / Secondo, Papa Emerirus III / Terzo, Papa Emeritus IV / Cardinal Copia, Aether, Air, Alpha / Fire, Aurora, Chain / Water, Cirrus, Cowbell, Cumulus, Delta, Dewdrop / Sodo, Earth, Ifrit, Ivy, Lake, Mist, Mountain, Omega / Quintessence, Pebble, Phantom, Phil / Special Ghoul, Rain, Sunshine, Swiss, Zephy.

I can’t link to my Etsy without risking Tumblr hiding the post from tag search results, but the link is in my pinned post, my carrd, I’m emptymasks on Etsy. Reblogs help support artists more than likes ❤️

[ID: Four landscape drawings, one for each of Ghost's Papas and the Ghouls that were in the band with them while they were the lead singer. Each Papa is in the center with each of their ghouls standings to their sides. Every character has their name written above or below them, on brightly coloured backgrounds for each Papa's robe colour. Also, individual pixel art chibi drawings of 69 characters from various European musicals (listed above) that are available as stickers. These drawings are also available as badges where they are placed inside circles to show what they will look like as physical button badges, some of them with plain colour backgrounds and some with 1-3 different pride flags as examples of how you can customise the backgrounds.]

For those who want to know what the little references in the prints are and don't want to guess, they're under the cut:

Omega can be a stompy boy when he's playing guitar, Alpha likes to throw up peace signs, Air is very found of the rock horns hand symbol, there's one close-up photo of Lake out there where you can clearly see his black sclera contacts and he's doing double 'horns' hand symbol, Mountain infamously takes his shoes off when playing the drums and leaves them on the stage at the site of his drumkit, Dewdrop likes to like.. most things including his guitar and his picks and sometimes his own hand, Pebble liked to hand out his drumsticks at the end of shows by dropkicking them into the crowd, Omega wore a flower tucked into his guitar strap during one show and Terzo constantly flirts with him more than other ghouls, Delta is suspected to be the ghoul that attempted to kick an audience member off stage when they climbed onstage and attempted to kiss Terzo, Zephyr was the only band member and only keyboardist who sat down while playing, the special ghoul played by Tobias wore a nametag 'Phil' in an interview, Swiss constantly is showing all his teethies with his smiles and always wiggling and moving around, Aether and Dewdrop often interact with Dew teasing/bothering Aether, Dew and Rain also often interact with Dew constantly reaching to grab his neck and attempt to kiss him, aaaand I think that's everything I intentionally included other than just generally tried to get the poses and expressions to match the personality we've seen from each ghoul.

[bunnys-kisses]

the dnf club (vol. 1)

carlos sainz jr.

tags: smut/pwp, brazil gp '24, praise kink, hair pulling/playing, cowgirl position, spanish speaking!reader, affection

a/n: five dnfs at the brazil gp! i feel honestly so bad for them! it's nothing a little smutty fan fic won't fix! so welcome readers to the dnf club <3

franco edition // alex edition // lance edition // nico edition

"carlos." you said as you took your lover's hand and leaned in to him. he got out of your hand and wrapped his strong arm around you. by instinct you placed your hand on his chest and looked at him, "i'm sorry."

victory last week turned into a dnf this week. and you knew that the odds of him taking home the wdc were next to none. he still wanted his last few races with ferrari to be special. so every mishap hit harder.

he held you by the small of your back and silently kissed your cheek. and you knew what you had to do when you got back to the hotel that night.

you got to the hotel before he did. he had to sit through press and try to keep a grasp on sanity before he could slink back to the hotel room. you had dinner ideas for him to help soften the blow of the results.

dressed in one of his t-shirts that hung a little loose around the shoulders, and wasn't long enough to obscure your bright blue panties. you had your hair pushed back with a fabric headband with cat ears on them. it wasn't the ideal sex goddess look, but it was comfortable enough while you started to pack up for the trip to las vegas.

the door to the hotel room opened and you greeted your lover. but you were soon met with his weight against you. his size pressed against you almost had you toppled over onto the bed. you managed to lie down on it gently instead of a full faceplant.

"how are you, honey?"

he mumbled something in spanish, he wrapped his strong arms around and kicked off his sneakers before he dragged you into bed. the words in his first language continued. you pouted at them, you spoke spanish quite well and were able to easily pick up on what he was saying.

"it should've been better." "i should've been better." "i'm sorry, my love." and the one that curled in your stomach was, "i need to be with you. need to feel you."

his large hands climbed up under your shirt and you did him the favor to take it off all together. his lips found your heated skin and his hands rested at your sides as you both were tumbled into bed together. the covers kicked to the bottom as his hands then got to the waist of your shorts and pulled them down. "i need you." he said.

you ran your fingers through his dark hair, you could tell the hungry expression that crossed his face. how he looked at you, the kind of gaze that made you take control. he'd be good for you as repayment for such a failure on the track.

repentance.

you got on top of him in just your bra and panties. your hands splayed across his chest as you looked down at him. heat heavy in your cheeks as you said, "let's get you out of all of this. you don't need to wear ferrari, not when it's just you and i." you leaned in as you pulled his t-shirt up, "you can wear my kisses instead." then got the shirt up over his head.

he chuckled lowly, "i'll wear your kisses forever."

you stripped him the covered his face in kisses. you felt your affection towards him grew. the thump in your chest and you admired his nude body. you looked at him with love and continued to move against him. you teased his cock a little. he shuddered with want and when you pulled his thick hair a little, he moaned.

"you're so good for me, carlos. always have and always will be. you'll get them next time." you said as you sank down on his cock.

he moaned and held onto your hips as you started to move up and down. you never took his cock out of your sweet pussy but your movements still made carlos feel the shudder of excitement run through him. he whined, "i want to make you proud."

you replied, "you always do, carlos. even when you dnf, i still feel so proud of you. you're the best man for the job and whatever team you're on, you'll race them to victory." you yanked his hair a little more as you rode him. you wanted him to feel better, more confident. you hated when he beat himself up and wanted to do everything in your power to make sure that he was okay.

and that meant riding him. taking his cock so well that that he forgot all about the race. you pulled on his hair a little more as you moved against his cock. you rode him and he held onto your sweet hips.

"please." he panted, "it feels so good. i love you."

you giggled in response, you kissed his jaw and replied, "i love you too. anything for you, my love. you do so well, might as well get some loving in there as well. make you feel good despite the loss." you captured his lips once more and the two of you moaned against one another.

the movements picked up pace and you held onto his dark hair a little tighter. you feel the throb in your chest as the pleasure curled in your gut. you could feel the tension in your thighs from your movements, but kept going.

carlos knew he was lucky to have you. beyond lucky, the type of luck that allowed him to get onto the ferrari team. whatever higher power was looking down on him. gave him his two wishes, to race in formula one and to find a woman who he could love forever. and would love him too.

you pulled away from the kiss and looked down at him. you cupped his face for a moment, you spoke to him in spanish, "you did so good today. i know you think it was a failure. but." you kissed him on the face, "you raced beautifully. you always race beautifully." then quickened your kisses across his face.

he blushed a little bit and replied, "i always race for you. you fuel my soul." carlos loved you, obsessed with you in certain ways. but not in a way that cruel or hurtful. if he got to be by your side at any occasion, he would take it.

that was why he wanted to make you proud.

the kisses continued, they grew heavier with the more you moved. carlos' hands explored your sides, it made you shudder with want. it was incredibly hot between you two. the air of the hotel bedroom grew and you felt sweat down your back.

even with the kiss broke, you gazed into his dark eyes and your pace onto quickened. you laid chest to chest with him and moved his head by his hair to kiss him deeply on the lips. he moaned into it. you couldn't get enough of him. it was a deep need you had in your soul for him.

and he carried the same feeling for you. he groaned, "i love you. so much." he groaned through a tense jaw as you went as fast as you could go.

you could feel the strain on your back from the position and simply over doing it. but you didn't care. not at that moment. you only wanted to feel good. and the promise of immense pleasure for the both of you kept your hips moving in a way that made the both of you only get louder.

you were thankful that the headboard was sturdy enough to not slam against the wall, you didn't want that noise complaint come morning. carlos took you by the back of the head and kissed you deeply on the lips as he felt the course of pleasure through him.

it was undeniable, the heat between you two. it always had been and as the kisses got heavier, your pace got messier. and soon the feeling became overwhelming. and you tensed up around your lover, hands in his hair as you gave it on last tug before you came around his cock.

he groaned and held onto your hips once more, he moved you up and down his cock. your praise was loose on your lips as you told him how amazing he was, and how much you loved him. that your heart raced for him and you yearned for him. his pleasure with yours. he couldn't hold out much longer and with a few more strokes of his cock he pushed all the way inside of you and finished.

both exhausted, you laid on top of him. your hands on him as you tried to compose yourself. and instead of your hands in his hair. his hand was in your hair. he wasn't rough with his touches however, instead lightly stroking your strands as you laid curled up in one another.

you looked up at him and said softly, "next week will be your week."

and carlos smiled as he leaned down to kiss on the forehead, "it'll be our week."

come the next week in las vegas. carlos had a renewed sense of confidence. this would be his race to win, he'd make you proud and end the season on a high note. when the lights went down, it was show time. and carlos knew that he could get another victory. <3

[autismagolor]

⚙️MAGOMARCH 2024 PROMPT LIST⚙️

WOW its finally here! so sorry for the delay, february's been kicking my ASS

anyways! WAHOOO MAGOMARCH 2024 EDITION YEAHHH we've got some new prompts, but also a couple of returning ones! for explanations for the free prompts and "gijinka/canon" prompts, check out the 2023 post here!

ALSO NEW THING: here's the document if you want a clearer look at the prompt list, terribly sorry i didnt do this last year!

DON'T FORGET TO USE THE MAGOMARCH TAG(S) WHEN POSTING YOUR ART!!

that will be all from me, if you need an explanation for any of the prompts, my askbox is open :3

[babydollmarauders]

MEDIA MANAGEMENT — JACK HUGHES (PART SEVEN)

1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5- 5.5 - 6 - 7

y/ndevils00

liked by jackhughes, ehaula, and 28,628 others

y/ndevils00 hello everyone, welcome back to your postgame recap: blackhawks edition! unfortunately everyone’s favorite WAG (sorry girls) and social media manager: me, was unable to attend this road-trip due to illness. however, i, of course, still watched this game and have many a comments!

first, what the hell were these boys doing in first period that they couldn’t get a single goal against the blackhawks? had me yelling at the tv!

however, my favorite gingersnap got the first goal of the night 6:19 into the second period! GO HAM! I’M SO PROUD!

following that up, my uncle (we are still not related in any way) got his 11th goal of the season, tying up the game! really had me haula-ing! (get it? haula-ing? hollering? whatever!)

mere minutes after, my dear sweet boqy scored, making us end the second period up by 1!

we opened 3rd period with a camera shot of my boyfriend. that is the face of someone who misses his wonderful girlfriend and cannot wait to come home and take care of her while she is sick (jack come home. i think i need you more than they do.)

we kicked off 3rd period scoring with a goal by mr. edward cullen himself! he really does sparkle, doesn’t he! who knew vamps were so good at hockey?

with not even 4 minutes left in the game, we got an amazing wrap around shot by timo, who has yet to insult me again! i feel like a proud mother!

and lastly, my sweet baby, mercy put the nail in the coffin for this game with an empty net goal, bringing the final score to 6-3! dawson, you have never let me down, unlike your brother, john.

closing off this post, we have some adorable shots of captain swiss and lil jizzy with blackwood.

p.s. i’d like to bring everyone’s attention to my boyfriend’s hand. that’s my favorite hand, because it holds mine <3 jack come home, i have separation anxiety

tagged dougieham, ehaula, jesperboqvist, jackhughes, ryangraves27, tmeier96, dawson1417 and nicohischier

user oh no! i hope you feel better :(

john.marino97 i didn’t even do anything in this game and you still find a way to insult me

y/ndevils00 that’s exactly WHY i insulted you. do better.

jackhughes for once, you actually got what i was thinking about right

y/ndevils00 i’ve been saying you were thinking about me for so long, i was bound to be right eventually

jackhughes i miss you pretty girl

y/ndevils00 aww shucks, you’re making me blush 🤭

jackhughes nevermind never say that again

jackhughes you like my hand? you’re such a sap

y/ndevils00 let’s try that again

jackhughes i like your hand too?

y/ndevils00 why thank you! is it because it holds yours?

jackhughes dawson tells me i should say yes

y/ndevils00 well at least dawson understands how to be affectionate

ehaula i’m begging you to stop using my name as a pun

y/ndevils00 and i’m begging you to hop off my dick

dawson1417 @/y/ndevils00 y/n….

y/ndevils00 i mean, no, thank you. i would like to keep making my puns if that’s okay with you

ehaula since you asked so nicely.. still no

y/ndevils00 @/dawson1417 how do i work with this?

dawson1417 @/y/ndevils00 you stop making the puns?

y/ndevils00 @/dawson1417 i can’t do that

user67 sick y/n is so lovey, jack better get home asap

dougieham thank you, y/n!

y/ndevils00 you’re so welcome! now, will you bring me wawa when you guys get back?

dougieham i will. but does jack not feed you?

y/ndevils00 i don’t like his food

jackhughes @/y/ndevils00 you know i can see this right?

y/ndevils00 @/jackhughes no you can’t. this is a private conversation

jackhughes @/y/ndevils00 it’s really not

ryangraves27 i’m still not a vampire

y/ndevils00 i’ve never seen you eat garlic so i cannot rule it out as a possibility

ryangraves27 you’ve also never seen me drink blood though

y/ndevils00 look, i don’t know what you’re into

ryangraves27 i’m so confused

dawson1417 y/n, what do we say to marino?

y/ndevils00 @/john.marino97 i’m sorry and i love you both equally 🙄

john.marino97 @/y/ndevils00 this seems anything but genuine

y/ndevils00 dawson, he’s onto us! what do i do?

dawson1417 well i can tell you what you don’t do: that!

tmeier96 i think i learned my lesson from last time. i’ll never insult you again

y/ndevils00 good. actions have consequences and you’d do good to remember that!

nicohischier ❤️❤️

y/ndevils00 you are my favorite, swiss cheese

nicohischier i’m revoking my hearts

y/ndevils00 it’s too late, i already have them they’re mine now

[25centsoda]

DinLuke Fic in honor of AO3 Down

Chapter 1 of my five-chapter wip (currently getting my ass kicked by chapter 3) to feed the starving masses on this terrible day of AO3 Down. Fic and summary subject to change by the time I finish, edit, and finally post it. Fair warning this chap is 9 pages on my google doc.

Summary: After rescuing Grogu, Din retired to a quiet life as a lighthouse keeper with his son. Unfortunately, his life is determined to be anything but quiet.

Tags: Mermaid au, DinLuke, Din Djarin, Grogu, Luke Skywalker, Cara Dune, Moff Gideon, Darth Vader, Emperor Palpatine, Little Mermaid-ish, fantasy au, modern au, AAC, autistic Grogu, nonspeaking Grogu, Din was a hitman

EDIT: AUGH apparently AO3 came back up while I was posting. Was supposed to be down for 3 more hours...smh. Anyways, enjoy ig!

There was a merman lying on the rocky beach, above the tidal line, not twenty feet away.

Din rubbed his eyes. Blinked. The merman was still there.

He turned around.

Turned back.

Still there.

His gaze drifted up to the clouds as he thought, mind churning like stormy waves. Had he had breakfast that morning? Or water? Dehydration did things to the brain, right? Maybe the kid had kept him up too late and he was dreaming…

A rock landed very near his foot. He looked down.

The merman was waving to him. Propped up on one pale arm, with blue…gills? Fins? Waving merrily just behind his ears. There were more fins along the back of each arm. He was smiling and mouthing something, but no sound was coming out.

Din better not be hallucinating.

He picked his way across the rocks and stopped in front of the…fish. Man. Gods above, there were scales on this man’s bare stomach, and just below his belly button the skin faded entirely into blue scales, and his lower half was…

The merman flapped his tail, silently laughing. It slapped the ground with a wet sound.

Din could only stare.

The merman waved his hand, bringing Din’s attention back to his face, which was unfairly beautiful, a fact that Din elected to ignore. He began signing animatedly and mouthing something, but it wasn’t any sign language Din knew, and he’d never been great at reading lips.

Din shook his head. “Sorry, I don’t understand.”

The merman stopped signing with a huff. He bit his lip, looking around. There wasn’t much to see. This beach was isolated—that’s why Din had chosen it. There was nothing around except for chunks of pale rocks in varying sizes, the water, and, distantly, grassy dunes. And the lighthouse Din was paid to keep.

“Hold on,” Din said. He got several steps away before another thrown rock reminded him to say, “I’ll be right back. I’m going to get something that will help.”

It was a long walk back to the lighthouse, but it was a walk he made every other day, to ensure that nothing weird or dangerous had washed up. And it was a good thing, too, because evidently something had washed up. Or…someone? Din wasn’t really sure how to refer to a literal merman. He still wasn’t convinced that he hadn’t hallucinated the whole thing.

Grogu was waiting at the door for him, one little hand holding the doorframe as he leaned out of it, waving his device. “Ba!” he shouted. His black hair fell into his face—Din needed to cut it soon—as he looked down to make selections. As Din neared, the device read out, “Dad where go? Why back soon?”

Din tousled his son’s hair. “Just came back to grab something real quick, buddy. I’ve gotta go out again.”

Grogu tilted his head in question.

Din passed him, entering the kitchen. “I don’t know what I’ve found. Somebody that needs help, I think.”

.

.

.

Din made his way back to the beach. The merman was still there. Din wished he had thought to grab himself a bottle of water, or a snack or something, but the fact that the man was still there boded well for Din’s mental faculties, if not for the logic of the universe.

“Can you read English? D’you even know English? Do you know what I’m saying?”

Din felt stupid, talking to some hallucination-man-fish-thing, but the man nodded, so Din took that as a yes.

“Okay. Uh, well I have this.” He held out the communication board that he had brought. It was laminated—they all were, so that they would last longer—so it wouldn’t be bothered by the fact that the man reaching out a hand to take it was still dripping wet. Din had grabbed the hospital board rather than any of the core boards or fringe vocabularies, thinking that it would be the most useful. It wasn’t like Grogu already had a single-page board for mermaid trapped on the beach, and Din figured that the man was likely to be injured or hurting in some way, being so far up on the rocks. “Point to whatever you want to say.”

The merman examined the green board with interest, front and back. He seemed to read every icon carefully. The back had the alphabet and “YES”/”NO” along the bottom, a section labeled “I WANT”, a section labeled “I AM”, “I WANT TO SEE”, and a section containing icons for yes, no, thank you, stop, pen/paper. The front had pictures of a blank, uncolored body showing the front and back view with a pain scale in the middle, and icons describing different types of pain like itches, stings, can’t move. Along the sides of the front were requests for items, bathroom, and like that, don’t like, repeat that, speak louder.

After a while, Din said, “Well? Are you, uh, injured, or anything?”

The man scanned the board again, and finally pointed to the image of a glass labeled Water. As he did so, Din noticed that his fingers were webbed halfway together, with shimmering blue, nearly-transparent webbing. He looked up at Din.

“Right. Right.” Din found himself swinging his arms as he looked around the beach. He forced himself to stop. “I can. Uh.” How heavy could a fish-man be? Probably very heavy. Still—“I can bring you back to the ocean?”

The merman shook his head vehemently, eyes wide. Din noticed for the first time that they were blue, like the man’s fins. The man pointed to the red icon labeled NO over and over.

Din held up a placating hand. “Okay, okay. No ocean. Got it.” He didn’t understand in the slightest, but the message was clear. “What if I bring up a bucket?”

The man nodded.

Din…didn’t have a bucket on him. Luckily, there was a storage shed not too far from here—there was a dock about half a mile back. Once he had a bucket and filled it with water, he hesitated.

“Do you want me to just—” Din made a motion like he was going to throw the water on him.

The man gestured for the bucket. Din handed it over. The man dipped his hand in and splashed the water on the fins sticking out of his head.

Huh. Maybe those were his gills, or…something. Din didn’t exactly know that much about fish biology. Mostly what he knew about was killing. And, slowly, how to care for a nonspeaking toddler.

“Are you lost? Are you, uh, hungry?”

The man pointed to Thank you. 

Din was suddenly seized with the urge to know—”What’s your name? If—if you can spell it.” If a merman knew English, he could spell his name in English, right? Or would it be all clicks and whistles, like a dolphin?

He watched as the man spelled L—U—K—E.

“Luke.”

A nod and a smile.

“Luke,” Din said again, and wasn’t it enough that the man had an unfairly attractive face and, if he was already admitting things to himself anyway, body? Did he have to have a name that moved in Din’s mouth like that?

N—A—M—E—?

“What?”

Luke spelled it out again.

“Oh, my name.” Gods, Din was an idiot. “It’s Din. Din Djarin.”

Din. Luke mouthed the name, smiling. Din felt like he was going to combust.

“Uh, if you’re not going to go back in the ocean…” Din paused again. Luke shook his head wildly, almost unbalancing himself. Din forged on. “...would you like to come to my house? I have a bathtub I can fill with salt water for you; it’s probably more comfortable than these rocks.”

Luke pointed to Yes.

“Okay, great.”

It was quite the job getting Luke to his house. He’d thought he was pretty strong, but they had to take several breaks for Din to catch his breath. The merman was slimy in his arms, his scales rough. Luke held on to the (emptied) bucket and the hospital communication board. By the time they got back to the house, the sun was beginning to set, Din’s arms and shirt were rubbed raw, and Grogu was angry—at least, he was until he saw what Din had in his arms.

Grogu squealed. His device read out, “Mermaid! Mermaid! Mermaid!” He did a little dance, flapping his arms and twirling excitedly in the doorway.

“Move, kid,” Din grit out, muscles shaking. Luke waved from his arms.

Grogu got out of the way and Din made it all the way into the bathroom before he had to set Luke down again lest he drop him. Luke shivered on the cold tile. Din had to reach over him to turn on the tap. Grogu waited in the doorway, watching.

“Oh—sorry, do you need salt water?”

Luke pointed to Yes, his hands shaking. His golden-blond hair was drying now, into thick waves around his gills. Some of the blue spots on his skin were turning colorless, as well, which probably wasn’t great.

“Kid, stay with him a minute, I’m gonna get salt water.” Din pulled the drain open and stood, shaking off the water.

More buckets. More trips back and forth to the shore. It took more than Din had thought to fill up the bathtub. Luke splashed himself every so often as he waited. Grogu had brought in the whole folder of laminated communication boards, and pulled down the laminated booklet on a hook from the bathtub, and he and Luke were engaged in a vibrant conversation that meant that Din had to watch where he stepped lest he slip.

Finally, the tub was full, and Din hauled Luke up one last time, and into the water. Luke slapped his tail excitedly, splashing water everywhere. Grogu squealed, raising his little hands up to the sky. Din was entranced by the water shining off Luke’s blue scales, the almost translucent…skin?...on the bottom fin, the rigid, darker blue spines that held it together.

An alarm shook Din out of his thoughts.

He stood. “I’ve got to make dinner and get everything set up for the night. Are you two good here?”

Luke held up a beach vocabulary board and pointed to Yes. Grogu squealed again, nodding vigorously.

“Try not to make too much of a mess,” Din said. He put two towels on the floor in front of the tub, which soaked up some of the water. He held back a sigh. Fighting mold was a constant battle, in a building so close to the ocean. Hopefully any mold-related damages wouldn’t get taken out of his paycheck, even if they were in the bathroom and therefore probably his fault.

Attending to his regular duties kept Din’s mind off the merman in his bathroom for a while. He stood outside long enough to get a sense of the weather, and reported it on the radio, then listened to the airwaves for a while to see if there were any nearby boaters that needed rescuing—an über-rare occurrence, on this island. He briefly entertained the idea of radioing in his “rescue” of Luke, but what would he say? “I found a merman”? Saying that would be a one-way ticket to a psych eval if not a hospital stay - in other words, losing this safe haven where he and his son lived. Besides, without the merman in front of him, the whole thing felt like a dream. A dream that left raw skin on his chest and arms. A dream he wouldn’t breathe a word about.

He walked around the perimeter of the lighthouse and the station house, noting down any damages that would need repair or repainting soon. Took inventory of foodstuffs—they were starting to run low, but a supply was due in a week, and they had the garden, as long as a storm didn’t take it out. Tended the garden—ripped out some kudzu that kept somehow finding its way onto this isolated island, squirted bugs off the rosemary with one of Grogu’s little water guns. Checked on the water filters, generators, and radio antenna. Luckily everything was in decent order in spite of a day of neglect.

The sun was well and truly set by the time that Din went back inside the station house and started making dinner—chicken fingers, Grogu’s favorite. After some hesitation, he threw some frozen fish sticks on the baking tray as well. Maybe Luke would eat them. Din hadn’t gone fishing in a few weeks; Grogu had had him working their way through a craft book Cara had brought them at the last supply drop, which didn’t leave a lot of time for much beyond his daily duties, time consuming as they were. If Luke wanted fresh fish, Din could go fishing tomorrow.

He stacked up three plates on his arms and brought them into the bathroom. Not a large bathroom to begin with, it was a crowded space between the adult, the kid, and the mermaid. Setting his own on the white marbled sink countertop, he handed a plate of chicken fingers and broccoli to Grogu and a plate of fish sticks to Luke.

“It’s fish,” he explained. “With breadcrumbs.” At Luke’s blank look, Din hastily explained, “Bread is, uh, it comes from grain, wheat, and so it’s kind of…like…well, it’s a carbohydrate. I dunno if you have those in…the ocean. Try it, and tell me if you can eat it, or if you need something else.” He sorted through Grogu’s communication boards scattered on the tile floor, and found one with ocean creatures, which he set on the rim of the bathtub.

Grogu turned his nose up at the broccoli with a huff.

“Come on, kid, you’ve gotta have vegetables.” Din was too tired to really argue the point tonight, but Grogu didn’t need to know that.

Luke reached one dripping hand out of the tub and pointed to the broccoli on Grogu’s plate, with an encouraging sort of Go on expression, nodding. The broccoli got a little damp at the touch of his pale finger. Din grimaced, sure that the salt water would ruin whatever little chance there was of getting the kid to eat his vegetables.

Grogu surprised him by digging in.

Din blinked.

Alright then. He’d keep slightly soggy in mind, on his list of ‘things that get Grogu to eat.’ Kids were mysterious creatures sometimes.

Din ate his own plate of chicken fingers and broccoli sitting on the closed toilet seat, watching the two of them interact. It was, of course, mostly silent, occasionally interspersed with one of Grogu’s noises like “ba!” Luke picked at his fishsticks (after scraping off the breading), Grogu picked at his chicken fingers. Their hands were pretty occupied with the boards. At this angle, he couldn’t see all that they pointed to, but he saw the fairytale board, ocean, and mythology. And home.

.

.

.

After they finished eating, Din cleared the plates, and let Grogu and Luke talk for another hour while he cleaned up and checked the weather again.

“Alright kid, bedtime.”

“Ba!” Grogu said angrily, his little face scrunched up. Din’s heart melted in spite of himself. 

“No, come on, it’s time for bed.”

Luke waved his hand for Grogu’s attention. Once he had it, he exaggeratedly stretched and yawned, then put his hands together and leaned his head against them, breathing big in, and out. If he was underwater, Din was sure that there would be enormous bubbles coming out of his mouth, adding to the effect.

Grogu giggled. Luke peeked with one eye and smiled, then went right back to it.

Din gathered up all the communication boards and knocked them up on the counter, making them into a neat stack. He grabbed Grogu’s hand.

“Come on, I’ll sing to you.”

Luke broke out of his acting and waved goodbye, flapping his hand.

“I’ll check on you before I go to bed,” Din promised over his shoulder. He left the door open a crack, so that Luke could hear them move around and know that he hadn’t been left in the house alone.

Luckily Grogu’s room had a bathroom attached to it, so he could still have a quick bath—the salt water he and Luke had been splashing in all evening didn’t count—and brush his teeth before bed. Din brushed his teeth beside Grogu, glad for once that he still kept his toothbrush on his nightstand instead of in the main bathroom, an old habit from more chaotic days.

Finally, Din got Grogu clean, dry, in pajamas, and tucked into bed with his favorite frog plushie.

Din knelt beside his bed with a groan, cursing old injuries and unstretched muscles. “Alright, kid, what do you want me to sing?”

Grogu made grabby hands for his device. Din pulled it off the charger and handed it over. Grogu navigated through the pages swiftly, before finally selecting, “Sun.”

“Alright.” Din cleared his throat, and began to sing. “You are my sunshine, my only sunshine. You make me hap-py, when skies are gray.”

Grogu snuggled down in his blankets, clutching his favorite Froggie close to his chest, watching Din with absolute love and trust in his eyes. It made Din’s heart clench. Stars, he loved this kid. He would move heaven and earth for him. He had, when he’d rescued him. Although really, it was Din that had been rescued that day.

He reached a hand out and caressed the soft brown hair atop Grogu’s head. “You’ll never know, dear, how much I love you. Please don’t take, my sun-shine a-way.” He kissed his son’s forehead. “You all ready for sleep, big guy?”

Grogu squealed softly.

“Alright.” Din pressed his forehead to Grogu’s one last time as he took his device and set it on the bedside table, and turned out the light. “If you need anything, just yell.”

He closed the door softly, leaving just a crack to let light through.

Luke was waiting in the bathroom, arms folded on the rim of the bathtub, his head resting on top. He perked up when Din came in, but not much.

“How’s your, uh, oxygen?”

Luke gave a thumbs up.

“Tired?”

Luke nodded.

“Yeah, me too.” His muscles were certainly sore from lugging all that water and the merperson. He needed to work out more, probably. As busy as this job kept him, it didn’t maintain his physical fitness the way he used to. He’d let himself get…soft, as Grogu’s dad.

“You good for the night? Need any fresh water?”

Luke shook his head. Thankfully. Din didn’t particularly want to go out in the pitch dark. It would be hard to hold a flashlight and a full bucket at the same time.

“Can you write?” At Luke’s nod, Din took out a weather resistant notepad and pen and set them on the rim of the bathtub beside Luke’s head. “We’re expecting a supply run in a day or so. If you need anything, or want anything, I can radio shore and have it delivered then.”

The merman perked up. Thank you!!! he wrote, with three exclamation marks. Din huffed a laugh.

Luke wrote, head bowed, for a while. Din watched his golden hair, long dried except around his…gills, bounce softly, reflecting the overhead light. It was mesmerizing, like watching light bounce off of water.

When Luke held up the notepad again, Din had to shake himself a little to refocus.

Salmon

Oysters

Something soft to lay on the side

Something I can help you with, as payment for taking me in

Din blinked. “I don’t need you to help me with anything.”

Luke’s gaze was pleading. No: Begging.

Din shook his head. “Really. Most of my job you can’t help me with anyway; unless you can repaint the lighthouse or pull weeds.”

Luke frowned, his lip stuck out. Din couldn’t help having a little thrill at the sight. It was adorable.

“Really! I guess I could…” He really thought about it. He supposed…that the counter could use a little basket for his keys. One of Grogu’s favorites from the craft book was basket-weaving. He could show Luke how to do it, and thus keep them both occupied, and Luke could feel useful. “Do you know how to weave baskets?”

Luke nodded eagerly.

“I’ll collect some materials for you from the wildflower garden tomorrow. Grogu can help.” Din broke off with a yawn. “I’ll tell our supplier to get the rest of it. Sleep well.”

Luke pointed at Din and mimed sleeping, with his head on his hands, then nodded as if to say You too.

Din smiled and turned to go. He paused in the doorway with his hand on the light switch.

“On or off?”

Luke tilted his head, brow furrowed. To demonstrate, Din flicked the lights off, then back on. Then again, saying out loud which was which.

“Thumbs up, on. Thumbs down, off.” He showed how to do it as he spoke. Luke gave a thumbs down. “Lights off it is,” he said, turning them off. “Goodnight. See you in the morning.”

He left the door cracked open again and made his way up the stairs, stifling a yawn.

He wouldn’t be surprised if the bathroom was empty in the morning. Weirder things had happened.

Although, if he was honest with himself—no, weirder things hadn’t happened. Sure, he’d had some odd jobs in his old life, but none of it had involved the supernatural. No, it was all kingpins and businessmen and whistleblowers, hackers, grifters, thieves, and the occasional unopened suitcase. Once, on his last job, a child. Never a merman.

Well, this made two that he’d kept instead of killed. Two that he’d saved.

He’d definitely gone soft.

But he found…he didn't mind it.

[cosmicstarlatte]

Devil-Mart: Shopping (Obey Me!)

━━━━━━━━━━ ✦ ━━━━━━━━━━

The brothers and you go grocery shopping. You can imagine what that's like.

»Characters: Demon Bros + very brief Dia and Barb

»Tags: Shitpost, Some Wholesomeness, Levi my boy, Dia is precious as usual, Bulleted Style

»Notes: Sorry I know I've mentioned this a few times but finally edited it to my liking. :'3 Alternatively I have another fic where they actually work at Devil-Mart if you haven't read that one lol.

Lucifer:

Grabs two carts, one being a race car type with two seats

"Levi! Belphie! Get in!"

OF COURSE HE STRAPS THEM IN

Puts a backpack leash on Asmo

"Beel, Mammon, get a cart each."

They're a big family so yeah they need a lot lol

"Satan, stay where I can see you!"

This man pulls out a CVS-receipt type of shopping list

You can practically hear western showdown music as he stares down another customer for the last bag of spicy newt chips

Hands Satan Asmo's leash

He wins the last bag of course

"SATAN! ASMO! Where did you go!?"

(Later)

"I have a coupon for this."

"Well the sale sign said-"

"Here's my rewards card."

"I have reusable bags, thank you."

Mammon:

Thinks grocery shopping is boring but only goes because of you

Is the reason the store started locking more stuff up behind glass cases

Has tried to bargain with workers and hopes it works one day

Confidently accepted Satan's bet (you tried to stop it)

He left his shopping cart with you

Next thing you know he gets on the intercom

"Lucifer! Daddy will find you! Don't cry! If anyone sees a black haired-"

Lucifer drop kicked him knocking him unconscious

[Security Liked This 👍 ]

Levi:

Happily gets in Lucifer's cart and continues gaming on his console

Is use to Lucifer strapping him in

Finds it oddly comforting

"Lucifer can we get the Ruri chan limited edition cereal!?"

"It's on the list."

"Lucifer! Don't forget we need more Hell Sodas!"

"It's on the list."

"Oh and my special Ruri shamp-"

"Leviathan."

[A few minutes later]

"...Hey Lucifer!"

"LEVIATHAN."

Satan:

Didn't want to come but Lucifer makes grocery shopping a family outing

Walks around reading a book

Bet Mammon he wouldn't get on the intercom and embarrass Lucifer

He knew he'd do it

He happily threw the grimm on his unconscious body

He took out the last jar of inferno bee honey from a families cart when they weren't looking

Occasionally crosses off Lucifer's snacks so he forgets them

Decided to ''save'' Asmo when he got the chance

Asmo:

Not the first time he's been on a leash

Just typed away on his D.D.D

Keeps trying to flirt with any cutie he sees

Lucifer yanks him away every time

However Lucifer does use him for discounts at the meat deli

Asmo doesn't mind he always treats it like a game to see what he can get 😏

Employees have fought for the chance to help him if he requires assistance

Was thankful when Satan saved him from Lucifer's watch

They went shopping at the cafe book store next door

Beel:

Loves grocery shopping, loves it

Always has to eat a giant meal before shopping otherwise he can't go

Food and family outing only the best duo!!!

Always feels guilty knowing the list is long because of him but he does his best to help Lucifer shop for the items

Pushed one cart with food and pulled the other with an unconscious Mammon inside

Is the reason the store stopped doing free samples

Belphie:

Immediately started snoozing when Lucifer strapped him into the cart

Doesn't care much for grocery shopping but doesn't fight it

Grannies always coo over him while he sleeps

"Oh what a cutie! The other one is kind of odd though..."

Lucifer always carries a sleeping Belphie back to the van while Beel packs the back of the van with you

Sure Beel could carry him but Lucifer insists its Beel's duty to help with grocery shopping as much as he can

Lucifer won't admit he has a soft spot for the youngest

Belphie won't admit he pretends to sleep so he can be carried by Lucifer

As you guys leave, you see Barbatos walking in, pushing Diavolo in his own race car cart who is happily "steering".

"We're going to the chips, Barbatos!"

"No, we are here for dinner ingredients my Lord."

"But I'm turning left!"

->[Dia & Barb art]

⬦You might also like: Coconut︱Mexican Restaurant︱Waffle House︱ You ARE The Father

[acourtofquestions]

Welcome page/post thx 2 A Court of Questions by @lavendarneverlands

This is my (secondary/“side”) blog for my #FirstRead (& adoration of) the Maasverse! — But take this as a heads up: I mix up the two pages frequently😅😂 sorry in advance for any confusion! — Think of this page like Potterless (except probably not half as cohesive & good as the podcast lol😂). I love enjoying the series with the fandom so please feel free to reach out to #ReadAlong or #ReadWithMe (it’s why I’m on Tumblr; no one I know reads these). 🫶

LET’S FANDOM ABOUT IT

This is a Maasverse related blog, thus it does discuss the series & spoilers (depending on where you are in the books) HOWEVER I try to keep up to date with spoiler warnings (often in the form of: #tags, red, 🚨, or what I call the “more” bar of safety) & I hope it makes it accessible for all readers! I also really try to keep this blog inclusive & friendly for everyone (any character, any ship, any reader, any person… or fae I suppose too :-) & use proper content warnings (as I greatly appreciate that in others too) … so thank you!!

As I am unfortunately human here’s a lil up-to-date guide for what is & is not discussed thus far (& as I also try to avoid spoilers for the books I haven’t gotten to yet)

— I have read ALL of ACOTAR,

— I have read ALL of Throne of Glass,

— None of CC (but I just got the book & am starting it ASAP).

Be warned: I’m a rambler of posts & content posting, and autocorrect is my true enemy😂🤣 p.s. I’m new here & always trying to learn!😊 I do my best to do my due-diligence and properly credit. And use TW whenever I can (as I need it in my life too <3

I leave most “reaction” posts up from my first reads. Opinions of course change over time! I try to edit & update (& or re-tag) but some stay old.

Currently my favorites and majority are:

ACOTAR

I love the Archeron sisters (Feyre is dear to me, I think Nesta is an important kind of character, and I look forward to more Elain in what I’m calling ACOTAR 5&1/2)

THE Valkyrie (Gwyn esp.)

I can go any which way with the Elriel/Elucien/Gwynriel/Gwynlain/etc. “debate” (like I said though I’m here for all fans and prefer to keep it generally positive/friendly; we’re all just enjoying stories & art😊).

I love Feysand (sry Tam-Tam😅 I struggle with him)

If you want to go give some ship love @gwynlain you can also find me there :-) 💕 because yes I am that fandom obsessed I have a side page for the side blog😂

TOG

I adore Celaena & Aelin (for posts on both I tend to call her “Aelin Sardothien” cause I love ❤️‍🔥 fireheart ;-)

Rowaelin is my fav ship (though you will find it was not an immediate love for “bird-boy”😂 from page 1😅) the “Team Chaol” force was once strong long ago (I don’t hate him now, I just like them as friends) though I’ve also shipped all the ships at some point🤣 (I like a lot of fandoms and have a very “SQUIRREL!” personality😅😂 so I do make a lot of references, despite this being my Maasverse page) there was a time for Dorlaena & of course Samlaena too

and Sam Cortland always deserves more (I love him & am still sad😅). My beloved "Assassins of Adarlan"

As will Dorian ALWAYS be beloved as a character,

I think in another life I’d like to be Yrene

Lysandra is a favorite.

Manon and the 13 are everything to me… till darkness claim us & beyond…

I still want a spin off with the cadre

I could make this list really really long because these books are one of my all time favorites

— Abraxos & Fleetfoot (TOG) & “The House” (ACOSF) as characters hold a candle to no other. —

I know little about “CC” Crescent City (other than some positive reputations, kick-ass red heads, and intriguing covers! Cute fan art for animal creatures, good friendship, and werewolves?) … + a possible crossover (I hope)?!?

Currently on page 1

Thank YOU “fellow dreamers” for welcoming ME! into your feed & Maasverse!

& to my fellow “first time readers” Welcome to you too! 💕

+ All you old-timers THANK YOU for your loving guide notes & support (for ALL THE FANDOM FEELS😂)!

… And yeah… Hi! Much love❤️💚🩷🩵🧡 all are welcome!!! This blog does NOT discriminate & is a safe place to enjoy fandoms (because it’s about enjoying stories!) regardless of race, nationality, ability/disability, gender, sexuality, belief, age, etc. Feel free to message & tag😊 + if it helps in the matter of communicating: I identify as she/her (please always feel free to tell me your pronouns if you like :-) if you wanna call me by something other than my blog name/names you can call me Lila (short for Delilah), I’m a Zillenial. I primarily speak English. & I look forward to enjoying stories with you!

And there’s nothing left to say but…

— LET’S FANDOM ABOUT IT —

[honey--wraith]

livv, i need you to know and understand one thing. i have never, not once, cried at an edit. never even thought i would. yours just took me out. i lost it at the end. you will be hearing my attorney. you won't get away with this blatant attack on my feelings. you're wonderful but you need to pay for you somehow. <3

shan!!!!!! kicking my feet and giggling when I see your name in my inbox you're so incredibly sweet and I'm so sorry for the emotional damage i've caused you

using this to give a kind of long-winded explanation of my thoughts behind this edit time 2 shout into the void but!

as I briefly mentioned in my original tags this song is based on a story from Dante's The Divine Comedy in which Francesca da Rimini is in the second circle of hell (lust) for her forbidden love affair. she tells Dante that she refuses to have any sort of regret for the affair. she would sacrifice any chance of a life beyond hell to be with her lover and would go through the torture and damnation to do it all again.

now I think a pivotal part of what interests me so much about beejhawk and their dynamic is they're both in the midst of the worst part of their lives. they are seeing hell everyday in the war and violence and death around them. for them to find each other in that is nothing short of a miracle. i was actually originally going to try to create some kind of time loop narrative with this edit (largely inspired by Al's writing) of them choosing time and time again to go through hell again and again "I'd tell them put me back in. darling I would do it again. If I could hold you for a minute" but it quickly got too hard and complex so instead i tried to show a lot of comparisons between WTK and GFA. more of a symbolic way of showing, as I believe, they would both go through the worst years of their lives again because in the end, it led them to meet each other "I'd tell them put me back in. And I would do it again."

ANYWAY! sorry for using you as an outlet for my rambling but thank you so so much for your very good message <3

[questersrest]

(sorry this is a side blog, dumblr only lets your reply to posts from your main)

anyway, another long infodump ahead (i get possitive responses from my followers when i do this so i will not apologise)

yeah, the room to the left in the quester's rest populates with player's you've tagged (talk to erinn, ask to canvass for guests) up to 6.

once you reach your 7th guest, the barrier is removed from the stairs to access the first floor (second floor for y'all americans) and erinn will explain she had to open it up to make room for more guests. on that floor, you'll find a door and more stairs barred off. the area will populate with another 6 guests.

at your 13th guest, well, first you'll find the whole interior of the quester's rest has been upgraded. but also erinn will have unbarred the door upstairs to make room for another 6 guests.

at your 19th guest, erinn will unbar the stairs to the second floor (third floor). there's another barred door there.

with your 25th guest, the quester's rest interior will upgrade againthe door on the top floor will open and you'll see you finally have room for the whole 30 guests.

if you have more than 30 guests, they start replacing the oldest ones but you can show guests to the royal suit so they never leave (ask erinn to view the guestbook).

when you reach the max capacity of 30, you'll get access to the basement. there's a fountain down there that spawns items, some of the items you find may differ from other players due to a hidden fountain group value in your save file. there are 4 spots where items spawn but a new spot gets added for every 100 players you tag up to 10 additional spots (14 total) at 1000 players. there's also accolades for tagging certain numbers of players up to 1000.

if you ever connected to wifi (ps while ds wifi was discontinued in 2014, there are fan replacement servers you can connect to, ask me about them for more info. otherwise, you can hack this stuff in with the save editor), you probably have the special inn guests from previous games who's rooms you can access from the elevator operator who takes you to the royal suites. they all have 3-5 pieces of gear to give you to dress up as them. they will all have one to give you the first time you talk to them, one to give you on your birthday (birthday in ingame profile settings matches date on your ds), and one to give you when the in is fully expanded. (they may also have one they give you if you talk to them as a certain vocation and/or one after a certain quest. they will also give you birthday cakes and/or party poppers on your birthday, these could only otherwise be obtained from the dqvc - the fan servers do NOT operate dqvc themes that had them. and 1 birthday cake is required for an extra quest so don't go using those up. one extra quest requires dressing as borya; borya will only give you his shoes when the inn is fully expanded. i bought borya's shoes from the dqvc in 2014 instead, the fan servers do NOT run the theme with those either. if you're fine with using a save editor you can hack all this stuff in instead if you want).

in tag mode you can also share a copy of any treasure maps. you can't tag the same player, every save has a uuid (universal unique identifier) so your save will know if it's the same player. but if they've left your inn (either bc you've got more than 30 and they were kicked out, or you manually kicked them from the guest book), you can tag them again. it WON'T count as an additional guest but you can share another map this way.

deleting a save file will delete the uuid so you can reset the save file on another copy over and over, playing through the first 2 hours of the game to reach the quester's rest, then tagging your main copy. this is what i've been doing, it's slow but i'd prefer to avoid hacking my original copy if possible.

EDIT: almost totally forgot i was gonna add a video. if you'd like to see what the inn expansions look like, here's a video. looks like the uploader is enhancing the graphics in an emulator. they also have no actualy guests in the rooms so they probably just unlocked them with the save editor

[summerwritesfics]

🗺️But Suddenly It Seems Like I Can’t Get Enough

Pairing: Hanzo Hasashi/Kuai Liang Length: 1232 Words Rating: Teen Warnings: Modern AU, Chess, Chess Tournaments, Friendly Rivalries, Rivalry, Rival Relationship, First Meetings, Author doesn’t know how to play chess AU-Gust 2024 Day 5: Chess Players

AU-Gust 2024 Masterlist

Notes: Sorry if this isn’t edited too good today, I’m not feeling great :( But hey, enjoy Kuai Liang getting excited about finding a rival :3 Also as I said in the tags, I have 0 idea how to play chess, so you’ll probably notice a suspicious absence of anyone actually playing chess, in this fanfic about a chess tournament. Title is from Cut The Crap by Alice In Videoland.

“Checkmate.”

Kuai looked up from his move, staring across at his opponent. Hanzo Hasashi sat opposite, mouth agape as he stared at the board in front of him. This local tournament was small, with only a handful of contenders each year. Kuai was new to the area, and thus new to the chess scene here, but he’d been told at length what a juggernaut Hanzo was. He’d been undefeated for about 5 years in a row, his name feared by all the other contenders.

And Kuai Liang had just won against him.

It seemed even Hanzo was stunned by this turn of events, as his eyes darted around the table, trying to work out where he went wrong and what he’d missed.

“And we have our new champion, Song Kuai Liang,” the announcer cheered, oblivious to the general shock in the room. No one seemed to really know how to react, but Kuai could hear whispers between people.

Hanzo pushed himself to stand up, and Kuai followed his lead, somewhat surprised when the man offered his hand to shake. Kuai accepted, but couldn’t miss the frustration on his face. Thankfully though, he didn’t say anything, so he was at least a graceful loser even when he clearly wasn’t happy about it.

Kuai was rapidly whisked away by the organisers. He shook hands and was congratulated greatly. The trophy was small, but somehow still heavy. He wondered if he’d struggle with carrying it home. Still, he stuck around a bit, took a few photos with it for the local papers. Then got a round of congratulations from people within the crowd. The entire time, he didn’t see so much as a glimpse of Hanzo. Maybe the man had left already. Kuai wasn’t sure.

Finally, things died down, and he was able to collect his belongings and start considering how he was getting home. He pulled out his phone, hoping maybe he could get a ride from Bi-Han. If he was out of work, of course.

[Kuai Liang said: Hey, are you done with work?] [Bi-Han🖤 said: Yes. Just debating getting something to eat or whatever.] [Bi-Han🖤 said: Aren’t you doing your nerd shit today?] [Kuai Liang said: I just finished! Any chance I can get a ride?] [Kuai Liang said: Just… The trophy’s kind of heavy 🤭] [Bi-Han🖤 said: Wait, trophy?] [Bi-Han🖤 said: Holy shit, you actually won?!?] [Kuai Liang said: Yes I won 🏆🏆🏆] [Kuai Liang said: Wait, hold on, what do you mean “actually” 😐] [Bi-Han🖤 said: Never mind that. I’m coming to get you.] [Bi-Han🖤 said: We’re going to go get food to celebrate!] [Kuai Liang said: You know I didn’t win any money right? Just a trophy?] [Bi-Han🖤 said: Who cares! You fuckin’ won! We can celebrate that regardless!] [Bi-Han🖤 said: I’m on my way!] [Kuai Liang said: Thanks big brother. I’ll be waiting outside 😁]

He slipped his phone away, threw his backpack over his shoulder and picked up the trophy. He looked at it, smiling before turning to leave the building.

As he stepped outside, he noticed someone standing to one side. He turned his head enough to see Hanzo, leaning against the wall and smoking a cigarette. They stared silently at each other for a minute, and Kuai wondered if Hanzo had as little clue what to actually say as he did.

“Um. Good game,” Kuai decided to comment, immediately kicking himself. Of course it was a good game for him, he’d fucking won it.

“It was,” Hanzo sighed, pushing himself away from the wall and walking over. “You’re a very skilled player. How long have you been at it?”

“Since I was about… 8? I think?” It was roughly that age anyway. He’d been interested in it for a little longer than he’d started playing. “My Grandfather had a chess set when I was young, and I was fascinated by it. So one day, he brought me my own set and taught me how to play.”

Those were good times. His Grandfather could be a very stern man, but it was stated by everyone how much his heart seemed to soften after the births of his Grandchildren. Bi-Han was more insistent that it was Kuai Liang specifically who seemed to win him over. Kuai had been a sickly child, and something about that triggered a change in their Grandfather. Kuai wasn’t sure, all he knew was that his childhood was a warm one, full of love, thanks in part to Grandfather.

“Well, he did a good job teaching you.” Hanzo threw his cigarette down to the floor, stamping it out. “You’re the first real challenge I’ve had in a while.”

“Thank you,” Kuai said with a smile, feeling his face heat up slightly. “You weren’t an easy opponent to beat yourself.”

Hanzo smirked and chuckled before adding “next time, I’ll make sure it’s even harder.”

“I wouldn’t want it any other way, Mr. Hasashi.”

He held his hand out to shake again, and as their hands met, Kuai looked Hanzo in the eye. It was clear that their match had sparked something between them. A desire to win, and to best an opponent that they respected. It looked like future tournaments in this town were going to be very interesting.

From the corner of his eye, he saw Bi-Han’s dark blue car pull up next to them.

“Ah, sorry, that’s my ride,” he explained, releasing the other man's hand and pulling away. “Take care.”

“You too,” Hanzo replied, returning to his spot against the wall. Kuai briefly wondered if he was waiting for someone too, but decided not to ask.

He ran over to Bi-Han’s car, throwing open the door and slipping into the front passenger seat. Bi-Han was peering out the car window towards Hanzo with a frown on his face.

“Who’s that guy?” Bi-Han asked, in a tone Kuai was far too familiar with. It was his overprotective big brother tone.

“His name’s Hanzo, he’s the guy I beat to win.” He stared at Hanzo, and then looked down at his own reflection in the metal of the trophy. “I think he’s my rival now!”

“Only you could sound so happy about something like that.” Bi-Han shook his head, pushing his foot against the excelerator, as they began to pull out of the parking lot. “You know this is real life and not one of your fanfics right? You and this guy aren’t going to suddenly start making out in the middle of a game.”

“That’s not why I’m happy about it. I’m just happy to have someone so good to play against.” He paused for a few moments, pursing his lips. “Also you don’t know for definite that won’t happen.”

Bi-Han rolled his eyes, but didn’t touch on the subject more as he asked “so, where do you want to go to eat? Your choice, seeing as you’re the one with something to celebrate.”

“Can we go to the Korean barbecue then?” He asked, glancing in the rear view mirror to look for Hanzo one last time. He could just about see him walking over to get into a car himself. Strange, but he supposed maybe he’d wanted the cigarette before leaving.

“Sure thing.”

Kuai settled down, running his hand along the edges of the trophy. He was going to have to get a lot of practice in if he wanted to win the next one.

[crispycreambacon]

HELLO AGAINN !! ^O^ IT’S THE ANON FROM THE OTHER DAY !!! JUST FELT LIKE SENDING A FOLLOW-UP ASK ,, ^_^

FIRST OFF , OH MY GODDD ?1??1 I WAS ABSOLUTELY NOT EXPECTING SUCH A HEARTFELT RESPONSE WHAT THE HELL ,,, I’M SO GLAD THAT MADE YOUR DAY SO MUCH ?1?2?1? SNIFFFLLESS ,,😢😢

ALSO !!!! I DIDN’T MENTION IT IN THE FIRST ASK BUT SOMETIME BETWEEN WHEN I SENT THAT AND NOW , I READ YOUR TRANS PROFESSOR FIC AND OHHH MY GODDDDDDD . THAT WAS SO . HOLY FUCKING SHIT . GENUINELY SPEECHLESS .

I READ IT AT LIKE 1AM ON A SCHOOL NIGHT AND AAAUUUGGHFHF THAT HIT LIKE A TON OF BRICKS ,, I WAS LITERALLY LIKE THAT ONE “light work , no reaction ! OOHHH… OKAY IT’S GOT A LITTLE KICK…” VIDEO WHILE READING… NOT TO MENTION THAT I LISTENED TO ANTHEMS FOR A SEVENTEEN-YEAR-OLD-GIRL AS I READ .

WHILE I DID SOB SEVERAL TIMES WHEN READING , THAT DOES NOT MAKE THIS ANY LESS OF A POSITIVE MESSAGE !!!! I AM YET TO REREAD IT , BUT THE FIC MEANT SO MUCH TO ME , AS SOMEONE WHO HASN’T FELT SURE OF THEIR GENDER LIKE… FOREVER . AND EVENTUALLY JUST GAVE UP FIGURING IT OUT . ( & also had friends that suspected i may be non-binary …. haven’t officially went with any label yet though )

I RESONATED WITH CONNIE SO MUCH WHILE READING ,,, TO THE POINT I HAVE SINCE BEEN CONSIDERING STEALING HIS NAME . IT’S SO INSANE TO ME TOO BECAUSE I’VE NEVER FELT SO STRONGLY ABOUT A POTENTIAL ADDITION TO MY RELATIVELY SHORT LIST OF NAMES ??? AND IT’S MOSTLY DUE TO YOUR FIC ,, I EVEN HAVE A PROFILE OF ONE OF THE PIECES GOING WITH THE FIC BECAUSE OF HOW MUCH IT RESONATED WITH ME . ( WITH CREDITS OFC DWWW !!! ^_^ )

ANYWAYS MOVING ON FROM THAT !!! I’M VERY GLAD TO HEAR I CAN USE YOUR ART FOR EDITS !!! ^O^ I ACTUALLY TRIED TO EDIT YOUR PUPPET HISTORY GOD ART EARLIER TODAY ,,,, UNTIL I DISCOVERED THAT CAPCUT DECIDED TO MAKE MOTION BLUR A PRO FEATURE . WHICH SUCKS ASS , CONSIDERING HOW IMPORTANT MOTION BLUR IS IN TRANSITION EDITS ,,, AND HOW I LACK CAPCUT PRO 😞😞 BUT WHENEVER I RECOVER FROM THAT !!!! BE READY FOR AN EDIT !!!! ^_^

ANYWAAAYSS THIS WAS MUCH LONGER THAN ANTICIPATED ,,, HERE IS A GOLD STAR FOR MAKING IT THIS FAR & HAVE A FABULOUS DAY !!!! ^O^ ⭐️

- 🦇

Hello... Sorry for taking a while to respond to you. Life's been kinda busy on my end 😅

But waugh... it really means a lot to see you and your kind words again. I'm so so happy that Snip Snip resonated so strongly with you especially since I poured a lot of my experiences as a non-binary person into the fic. And it's incredible that you potentially found a new name through this fic!! Oh my gosh, I'm actually tearing up as I type this.. It really is heartwarming knowing the impact that fic had on you <3

Best of luck in your journey! Just a reminder that while labels can provide a sense of comfort and community, they aren't as important as the internet makes them out to be. You don't need to label your identity to have your identity be valid. You are welcome in the LGBT+ community regardless of whether you know what your gender is or not. Experiment with labels if you'd like—you can always change your mind about them—and do what is best for you.

And THAT IS FOUL OF CAPCUT TO DO OH MY GOSH??? Editing programs stop gatekeeping important features through subscription fees challenge... Agh, I hope you'll get around this problem. I really am so excited to see the edit. Again, PLEASE tag me or send me a link through DMs. I'd be more than happy to check it out :]

Once again, thank you so much for this incredibly sweet message 🫂 I hope you are doing well, and may you have fabulous days ahead of you ^^

[rainpebble3]

WIP Wednesday

Thank you so much to @thequeenofthewinter for the tag. And what a lovely snip you shared <3

I'll tag @mareenavee @paraparadigm @kookaburra1701 @orfeoarte @archangelsunited @gilgamish @thana-topsy @tallmatcha @snippetsrus @rhiannon1199 @inquisitiondragonborn @the-storytellers-seer @elfinismsarts @friend-of-giants @saltymaplesyrup @changelingsandothernonsense @thelightofmorning @dirty-bosmer

I wish I had more to share but words haven't been wording so please enjoy my paltry offering of Nera chatting to Savos :)

edit: ooops almost forgot some screenies :D

Chapter 11 - Still 😅

He held up a hand, “Brelyna’s mother is not named Savyana. The Maryon family has always been close to mine and I have known Brelyna since she was a child. So, could you perhaps tell me the truth before I summon some atronachs to escort you from my college?”

His college?! Nera swallowed, struggling to get past the knot forming in her throat. Her next words came out in a harried wheeze. “My name is really Nera, I met Brelyna in Windhelm… she…” Nera stopped and clenched her fists. She shook herself before continuing. She couldn’t lose her chance to escape the frozen pit of Oblivion she had been born in.

Master Aren watched quietly. “Windhelm?”

Nera nodded. “Yes. I was born there and well, Brelyna was passing through on her way here and she saved me from…” Rolff’s words from her nightmare echoed violently in her ears and Nera shuddered before continuing, “Brelyna saved me from an attack. She used magic against him and told me to come with her for my own safety.”

“You’re from the Gray Quarter?”

Unable to stop herself, Nera flinched. “Yes, sir.”

“Your assailant, I presume he was a Nord?”

She paused at the question, it caught her off guard for a moment. It wasn’t what she was expecting. Eventually she nodded and Master Aren sighed. Neither one of them spoke for a while, but Nera was kicking herself for being caught out like this. Gods what if she got Brelyna kicked out too?

“I hope this doesn’t affect Brelyna’s future here,” she suddenly whispered. “Please, Master Aren, she just wanted to help me out of a bad situation…”

“I’m glad she did,” he interrupted before sighing again, running a hand through his bone white hair and lowering his hood. “Given what you have said, I fear I already know the answer, but I must still ask. Are things still as bad as they were years ago? The last time I visited it was… it was terrible.”

Nera hugged herself tightly. “It’s worse. My parents discouraged me from doing anything that would have brought any attention to my existence as a Dunmer.”

This seemed to upset him, and his lined face furrowed. “Damn it. I had hoped things would improve with time.”

“You and my father both.”

Master Aren eyed her. “Are your parents…?”

“They’re alive, and as well as they can be.”

“And they approved of you leaving with a stranger?”

She shook her head. “Not at all, my father said if I left, I was no longer…” she stopped as tears suddenly choked her. She sniffed and blinked them away. “I was no longer part of their family.”

“You seem upset by this?” he asked, and she nodded. “So why do it?”

Nera couldn’t explain why the words fell so freely, they just did. Something about Master Aren made her feel safer, perhaps it was some strange illusion magic or something else. “Because if I stayed, I would be dead. Or I would be trapped, powerless for the rest of my life. Something which could be easily ended by those Nords, and no one would care.”

Master Aren tugged on his beard as he digested her words. He finally nodded. “I understand. And I will continue as if you were Miss Maryon’s sister.”

The tension left her body and she nearly crumpled to her knees. “Thank you, Master Aren.”

He frowned at her. “I’m sorry for the circumstances which brought you here, but as long as you abide by our rules, you will always be welcome here.”

She nodded, clenching her fists tightly. “Yes, thank you.”

He rose with a groan and began walking back towards the main building of the college. “So, did she move?” he asked.

Nera glanced at the statue of Azura. The sun had risen higher, and the clouds were different, instead of seeming like a misty shawl, they had grown thinner into a short scarf. She nodded quietly. “I think so.”

[justanotherpersonsuniverse]

barking barking, ok so i am rereading a bit of the last chapter and the things i had noted last time so that i remember everything that happened but after that i am loose

having an awful idea to listen to the guitar solo of freebird on repeat as i read this.... i am going to do it there is a rotating rat on the 10 hours version i found, wonderful

SO UH THIS IS MASSIVE SORRY ALSO SPOILERS FOR THOSE WHO HAVEN'T READ CAPS LOVELY NEWEST CHAPTER SCROLL PAST THIS VERY FAST IT MAY TAKE A WHILE. THE READ MORE BUTTON DOESN'T WORK IN ASKS SO SORRY

(i refuse to edit it this time, it took me like. a while last time and this is even longer, so you also get the incomprehensible pieces and no added notes to explain what i meant <3 (also a lot more '<3' this time. not sure why))

MORE CROWS rrr, they are important i know it

the way panthera is surrounded by cats and crows is interesting... like its an amusing visual but also really kick ass if you frame it in your mind right

yes, i enjoy that juleka is confronting ladybug on how she leads, especially considering that we know for sure they are inexperienced, yes i like this conversation

ooo, this is interesting, dust all kicked up focussing on different senses...very fun, always interesting to see how they can rely on things other than sight

woahhh, the staff lets off green sparks?? its made of copper <3 wait i looked it up and... aluminium makes green fire too? huh? this isn't important <33

awesome visual tho

YEAH BEAT HIS ASS BRO roger cop my beloathed <3

massive baby guy would be scary...

yay! teamwork! carapace and panthera woohoo

gonna be honest free birds outro on loop is really setting the mood for fighting for me

stop making me google things cap... t-rexes were apparently in the "late cretaceous" like ok thanks movie franchise for lying to me ig

Rena- this is amazing- she would record that. wonderful descriptors <33

No <3 i do not need the heartbreak of juleka v akumatised rose again <3 stop it <3 you hurt me <3

oh thank god-

this mantra of "calm yourself" is intriguing, i think its not going to work <3 let her go ape shit please

YOO PRINCE SHINING?? NOO

THIS IS BAD ASS THO

HA AND DOWN HE GOES

she's gonna turn this car around road trip with them when?? it can be a well deserved break <3 i am pitching this idea cap <3 this is what i would like and i would like it very much (i kid, its just amusing to me)

no because. because. alya nino and chloe are still able to have fun in a fight and. and- juleka is over here like a war veteran while marinette is trying to corral them all and- upset now

oh no juleka blacked out?? oh dear...

chlolix crumbs... wonderful... (to be honest with you, searching through the chlolix ship tag years ago was why i found these fics, so i love to see them but i am so attached to the story now <33)

OO? violence in your heart juleka?? maim and kill him you say?? good idea <3

“Miss me?” He grinned maliciously. “No, whore.” Queen Bee scowled at her side. i am actually losing it this is the funniest thing i have seen today-

ooo dark cupid being used to farm akumas... this is reminding me of minecraft and zombie villager farming to get the best trades, i can see the video titles now "this hack will TRIPLE your akuma production in just three EASY steps" <- unsure what this is but it happened in my brain, so there you go <3

i do like the idea of dark cupids powers being used tactically like this, i enjoy how its thought out critically when an akuma has an obviously helpful / game changing power

</3 "ma, i'm so exhausted" you are so cruel

AUGH WHAT NO ough rena got got by kim...

marinette kiss her quick

ough emotional

imma be honest for a hot second i thought juleka got hit by dark cupids arrow which i was fascinated by the idea of, however i think if she is to lose self control it would be more interesting if it was due to circumstances than mind altering magic

??? interesting, "there was- for a flash- a blackness that seemed to writhe like a bubbling mass of ink up her fingers—!" curious...

D: chloe... :(

augh my heart... they all got got protecting each other...

YOUR EVIL THIS IS UPSETTING ME

um hello?? who is speaking to her in bold?? am i dumb for not knowing?? girly is hearing voices

kill him!

gigantitan baby cult...

alternate universe where neither of them remember any of the old akumas names and at one point one of the akumas is so offended by the idea of being forgettable its enough of a distraction to get them

not me trying to think about whether a wish could actually be beneficial in any overall capacity using the rules we were given because hawkmoth is saying it would be...

no but why is the fact that akumatised queen bee is just sad making me so upset-

this is such a fucking big chapter jesus christ-

"nicking her ear and taking out one of her piercings" make her design look like gargamels cat azrael 2k18

(thats the wrong year. uh. shhh thats just the auto fill in my head when i say 2k)

hawky boy has gone off the edge of sanity hasn't 'e...

WOAH ONE ON ONE?? OWHUWO

OH NO ITS GOING BADLY

ohno that guy in bold is back at it again being ominous as fuck ohh i am dumb its plagg. yeah that tracks i am but a silly guy

ooo is it happening? is she doing the thing??

YOO THAT WAS BETTER THAN WHAT I THOUGHT OF THAT WAS BADASS YOO??

OUHTFHEDW

really did a bilbo catching the one ring on his finger and turning invisible right when gollum was boutta catch him tense vibes moment i would describe this better but i must get back to reading this was awesome

OOO SHE DID END UP BEING CALM IT WORKED WOHDANW4FIBBDE

THIS IS BAD COMMENTARY I AM EXCITED OK??

augjh=gtfreinig4fgrninib4frnedw

the way that i'm insane for the idea that someone recorded this fight and everyone ends up seeing panthera being a fucking badass has me insane...

mmmm switching the music to metallica

oh that was the right decision perfect base drop timing for what i was reading

ough awoog wibnefr, insane for the way that she is not referring to herself as human rn

awwybgfwei bgyrfned insane for all of this actually

THIS WAS SO FUCKING COOL JESUS CHRIST OH MY GOD ABHWEBHUUNERI I WISH I COULD SHAKE YOU BY THE SHOULDERS AND EXPLAIN ARTICULATELY EVERY DETAIL I LOVED BUT ALAS ALL I CAN DO IS KEYBOARD SMASH AT YOU ACROSS THE INTERNET

love carapce actually <3

“You suck bro. Take an L dude, take an L.” “HOW DARE YOU SAY THAT TO ME– THIS IS MY MOMENT-” “IT’S A RANDOM FUCKING FRIDAY DUDE IT IS JUST A FRIDAY!” Carapace shouted, so frustrated, pinching his fingers together at the man. “YOU’VE WASTED SO MUCH TIME! GET A JOB!” love this so much actually

YO I FORGOT ABOUT MAYURA AND YOU FUCKING NAMED THE CHAPTER AFTER HER BRO

What a wonderful power, she thought. To protect, instead of hurt. stab in the heart why don't you

“HEY LADYBUG WE FOUND A BROKEN STICK!” “I FOUND IT FIRST ACTUALLY!” “I FOUND A FEATHER!” The two simply sighed love them all so dearly actually <3

awoog wiubfrne, whub?? juleka babe girly darling why are you still injured???? ough it was because of the metallica moment (<3 i have my own name for it, the songs i listened to while that was happening was Battery and Master of puppets btw)

well course it didn't heal from the cure, they are exact opposites so their direct effects would cancel out. like a plus and a minus, idiot

Apparently Rose might’ve fought Adam in a random parking lot that they had ended up in because she thought he might’ve hurt her during the attack so.. HWJB4IFE HA she would do that wouldn't she?

“Meh, it happens.” alix??? this is such a hilariously chill response??

nriew more chlolix crumbs...

Alix defended herself passionately, throwing up her hands as icing laid smeared on her lips. She paused for a moment, as Chloe half-heartedly wiped a bit off before continuing THATS GAY GAYY THEY ARE GAY A3WDWEUI sorry i got a bit excited there.

“Don’t worry, I won’t disappear.” “…Sometimes I–” “Yes?” Juleka pepped up. Rose paused and seemingly waved her thoughts away, smiling. “It’s nothing, don’t keep your big bro waiting!” RRRR REVEAL YOUR IDENTITY PLEASE OIGUHER RRRR

no because you somehow manage to keep it being a slow burn after they got together and i'm insane for that

actually they are the most adorable creatures in the universe i love them

I just didn’t think you’d start hearing them now.. huhwuh?? she is supposed to hear voices?????? weird wack ass side effects

ruhroh looks like thats the consequences of your actions nathalie

RUHROH THE CONSEQUENCES OF JULEKAS ACTIONS?? ough she has made herself an extra high value target

Her boy– no. Their boy shut up your in a queerplatonic relationship with gabriel and you both dated emilie in my head. he is your child to me <3 (i will write that damn 200k slowburn unhappy ending prequel i joked about if you fucking force my hand (ie. continue to make reference teeny tiny things like that (or maybe it will just start planning itself in my head right now curse you my brain)))

WAIT THE REST OF THIS PARAGRAPH IS SO SAD SHUT UP YOUR A CRUEL BEAST CAP

Emelie and Gabriel’s boy. He was not her’s. He would never be her’s. She was just– the assistant. The distant guardian. This was all for him though, if she could help– she could just. Maybe.. Nathalie shook her head at herself. What mattered was this family. UPSET NOW

TEARING YOU APART RIPPING YOU APART WITH MY TEETH CAP THIS WAS INCREDIBLE AND THIS TOOK ME OVER 2 HOURS

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA I 4yrheiwjnow

you may receive asks in your future about me writing that thing i keep joking about. i am spinning it in my mind like this damn rat

i muted it at times but wanted a timer and uh

this is nearly 1800 words wrong what is wrong with me- yknow what no this is your fault for the monster size of this chapter, anyway, time to slap this beast into your inbox <33

THIS IS MADE ME SO SO SO SOSOSOSOSO SOS O HAPPY.,,,,,,,

THANK YOU SO SO MUCH,, IM GLAD YOU ENJOYED,,,

[once-upon-a-fanfic]

Feel Good Drag Part 3

Pairing: Eddie Munson x Chrissy Cunningham, Eddie Munson x OC (eventually)

Summary:   Natalie and Eddie had been best friends for a few years since she moved to Hawkins. The pair had been inseparable...until Chrissy Cunningham came into the picture.  

Trigger Warnings: Suicide attempt, overdose, Sexual Assault/rape

Notes: I decided not to really describe the OC so the reader can imagine them however they want. The only definite/clear describer (is that a word?) is that it is a she/her OC.

Part 1 Part 2

Written by @the-stuttering-kiwi Co-owner of @once-upon-a-fanfic

Edited by @theshadowsparade  Co-owner of @once-upon-a-fanfic

Oh hi. I’ve crawled out of my seasonal depression to finish this up.  Shout out to @andvys​ (I hope you don’t mind the tag) for getting me back in Eddie Munson’s choke hold. Go read her stuff, its seriously amazing *chefs kiss*.

“You kids realize it's my night off, right?” Jim Hopper leaned against the doorway of Natalie’s hospital room.

“Sorry Chief.” Dustin got up and grabbed the journal from the bedside table. Eddie hadn’t been able to open it again. “I have something I need you to look at.” He handed Hopper the journal and motioned for him to go out into the hallway.

Eddie sat on the edge of his chair, his right leg tapping in tune with his heart in his chest. The beep of the monitors and the hiss of the oxygen tank made him want to crawl out of his skin. He could hear Dustin and Hopper murmuring in the hallway, discussing the contents of the last page.

Eddie closed his eyes and grabbed Nat’s hand. It was the first time he touched her since they found her in the bathroom. How could he have abandoned his best friend?

“Hopper is gonna take care of it,” Dustin said. He sniffled as he sat back down in his chair, his eyes red and puffy.

Eddie nodded, grateful that his friend had called the police. He told Dustin, “You should go home and get some sleep. It’s been… what… almost 24 hours?” Eddie squinted at the clock on the wall, his eyesight blurry from exhaustion.

“So should you.”

“No, I can’t,” Eddie shook his head. “I’m not going anywhere.” He gripped Nats' hand, wrapping his fingers around hers.

“Then I’m staying too.”

After a few minutes of trying to get comfortable in his chair, Dustin let out a defeated huff. “Fine. If it makes you feel better, I’ll go sleep on one of the couches in the waiting room. But that’s as far as I’m going.”

Eddie cracked a small smile. “That’s good enough for me.”

With Dustin gone, the room felt overwhelming. His eyes filled with tears, and he found he didn’t have the energy to hold them back.

“I’m sorry, Nat,” a sob wrenched itself from his chest. “I’m sorry. I’m sorry.”

A loud thud woke Eddie. He shot up in his chair, trying to blink the sun that was pouring in from the window out of his eyes. He glanced at Nat, who was still unconscious. Another thud from behind him made him turn in his chair.

“What the fuck?” he wondered out loud.

Several boxes were stacked in the hospital room. A closer look told him they were from Nat’s room. Eddie quickly realized the person tossing the boxes in the room was Nat's mom.

“What the fuck are you doing?” he growled.

She glared at Eddie. “Didn’t you hear? My husband was arrested last night.”

Good; that is the least that should happen to him, Eddie thought. Instead, he said, “Yeah, and?  Shouldn’t it be his boxes you are tossing out?”

She had the audacity to look shocked. “The only reason he was arrested is that little slut,” she spat the word, “accused him of raping her.”

Eddie shot out of his chair, kicking it away from him hard enough it slammed into the wall behind him with a loud clang. He took two big steps toward Natalie's mom, standing tall to look intimidating.

“Your daughter, your child, ” he pointed behind him, “Almost fucking died because that piece of shit raped her.”

Nat’s mom was determined to hold her ground. “It’s a shame she didn’t follow through,” she sneered. Clenching his fists, Eddie opened his mouth to speak just as Dustin appeared in the doorway, arms loaded with snacks and drinks from the vending machine down the hall.

“What… what’s going on?” he asked innocently.

“She’s just dropping off some of Nat’s things,” Eddie replied through gritted teeth.

Dustin looked between Eddie, Natalie’s mom, and the boxes on the floor. It took him a few moments to read the room, but the realization hit him like a freight train, “Oh.”

“She was just leaving,” Eddie said bitterly.

Nat’s mom dramatically dropped the last box in her hands and stomped out of the room.

Eddie didn’t move as Dustin made his way into the room and dumped his haul onto the table under the window.

“You okay?” Dustin asked.

“I can’t… I can’t believe we left her with them,” Eddie replied. The guilt was eating him alive. Dustin didn’t reply, but Eddie knew he felt the same way.

“You should eat something.”

“I”m not hungry,” Eddie shook his head. He grabbed his chair away from the wall, pulling it back to its spot next to Nat.

“I know, but you should still eat something,” he offered Eddie a small bag of pretzels and a can of coke.

Eddie hesitated for a moment but took the food. “Thanks.”

He opened the bag, and the smell made his stomach growl quietly. He popped a couple of pretzels into his mouth and chewed slowly. He glanced over at the boxes Natalie’s mom brought, but even the sight of them made his stomach churn.

“We should get these boxes out of here,” he said before he took a big gulp of soda, “I don’t want Nat to see them when she wakes up.”

“I can call the guys to come and grab them.” Dustin had already gotten up to start calling.

“They can take them to my place,” Eddie said.

As they began to discuss the details of where Natalie’s stuff would go, Gareth and Jeff knocked on her door.

“Is she doing okay?” Gareth asked.

“She hasn’t really changed,” Dustin explained.

“And her mom really dumped all her stuff here?” Jeff asked, shaking his head while he looked at the boxes.

“I heard Creeper Craig resisted arrest last night. The Chief took him in all black and blue, broken nose, and a few more missing teeth.” Gareth cracked a smile.

“The least he deserves,” Eddie said while the others nodded in agreement.

Eddie helped them carry the boxes out to their car. It felt good to stretch his legs. He stood in the sun for a moment, the warmth spreading across his face, feeling the fresh air in his lungs.

“That’s the last one,” Dustin announced, loading the final box in the trunk.

Eddie reached into his pocket and grabbed his keys, snaking the one for his trailer off the ring. “Here, just pile them inside and I’ll take care of it later.” He handed the key to Jeff.

“I'll go with them to drop everything off and come back,” Dustin explained, as he went to close the trunk.

“Wait.” Something in the box caught Eddie’s eye. He took a couple of steps and grabbed the copy of The Hobbit he had gotten Nat for her last birthday. He used to read the book aloud to her in their downtime; Nat would snort with laughter when he would do the voices for the characters. Gollum was her favorite.

The memory made his throat tighten, and he fought back the tears that flooded his eyes.

Dustin looked at him sadly, “I’ll be back soon, okay?”

Eddie just nodded. “Okay,” he echoed.

Back in the hospital room, Eddie laced his fingers with Nat’s and gave her hand a squeeze. The heart monitor beeped steadily, and other than occasional footsteps in the hallway, the room was overwhelmingly quiet.

Using one hand, he opened the book that lay on his lap, his eyes scanning the note that he had written on the inside cover page. “ Now someone else in Hawkins can read The Hobbit because you won’t have the library's only copy indefinitely checked out. Happy 18th birthday, Nat! Please note that I am always available to do my best Gollum voice. Love, Eddie.”

“Love, Eddie.” He traced his messy handwriting with a shaking finger.  If this never-ending nightmare taught Eddie anything it was that he did love Natalie.  But if he thought he didn’t deserve her before...he sure as shit didn’t deserve her now.

Clearing his throat, Eddie turned to the first page and read aloud, “In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit…”

Natalie

Natalie wrinkled her nose, trying to get the feeling of air rushing into her nostrils to stop. She reached what felt like an extremely heavy hand to her face to try and push it away, but was met with hard plastic and tubing.

What the hell? she thought.

She opened her eyes and blinked a few times, looking around the room to get her bearings. When she realized she was in a hospital room, memories flooded back to her.

Craig. The smell of stale beer and old cigarettes. The bitter taste of the pills on her tongue. Eddie yelling in her ear while she vomited.

Eddie…

When her eyes found Eddie, her breath caught in her throat. He sat slouched in the chair next to her bed, a book lying open on his lap. His eyes were closed, and his mouth hung open slightly, a quiet snore escaping every few moments. She realized her left hand was firmly in his grip even though he was sound asleep.

She gave his hand a squeeze. Eddie’s eyes shot open.

“Hi,” her voice was small and raspy.

“Hi,” Eddie said breathlessly. He jerked forward to press the nurse call button.

“Wait,” Nat croaked. “We can call them in a minute, okay?”

Eddie nodded. He stood quickly and moved to the edge of the hospital bed, still holding Nat’s hand. He stared down to where their fingers were laced together. She gave him a reassuring squeeze. When he finally looked at her, his eyes were glassy. He opened his mouth to say something, but all that came out was a quiet sob.

“I’m sorry, Eddie,” Nat started, but Eddie shook his head.

“No,” his voice wavered a little. “No, we–I, I abandoned you, Nat. I will never forgive myself for that. You have nothing, nothing to be sorry for.”

“I really missed you,” Nat’s lower lip trembled.

Eddie nodded, leaned forward, and pressed his lips against her forehead.

“I missed you too,” he murmured. When he pulled away, he pressed his forehead to hers. His long hair fell around their faces, noses brushing against each other.

Nat heard hurried footsteps approaching her room. A nurse poked her head in and gasped.

“Oh, you're awake!” she hurried in and pushed Eddie out of the way to start checking Natalie's vitals. It wasn’t long before the doctor and another nurse came into the room.

“You’ll have to wait outside while we do some tests, okay?” one of the nurses pointed Eddie to the door.

“But–” Natalie started, feeling overwhelmed by the flurry of activity.

“It’s okay. I’ll be right outside, okay?” Eddie offered her a reassuring smile, but she knew he didn’t want to leave either.

Trying not to panic, Natalie gave a quick nod and kept her eyes on Eddie until he was out of sight.

Eddie

Eddie paced the hallway while the nurses worked. Chief Hopper had also arrived a little while ago, and was no doubt asking Nat about what she had written in her journal.

“Eddie!” Dustin’s voice was frantic; he came sprinting down the hallway. “Eddie, what’s wrong? Is it Nat? Is she okay?” Dustin skidded to a halt in front of Eddie.

Eddie opened his mouth to speak, but was cut off.

“She’s okay. I think you guys are okay to go in now,” Hopper appeared in the doorway, while the last of the nurses filed out.. He smiled and patted Dustin on the shoulder and gave Eddie a quick nod. “I’ll talk to you kids later, okay?”

Dustin took a deep breath, holding onto Eddie for support. “I saw you out here and I just thought… I’m sorry I took so long, man, I wanted to do something for you and Nat.”

“It’s okay; you came back just in time,” Eddie steered Dustin into Nat’s room.

“You’re awake?!” Dustin yelped and ran to the bed, nearly dive-bombing Nat.

Eddie leaned against the door frame while he watched Dustin give Natalie a tight hug. His chest felt lighter than it had the last couple of days, but anxiety still gnawed at the back of his mind.

“They said I can probably go home tomorrow afternoon,” Nat’s voice was beginning to sound normal again.

“So soon?” Dustin asked, surprised.

“It depends on bloodwork. You know, make sure things are improving, but they think I can recover better at home.”

Home…

Eddie chewed on his bottom lip–how was he going to tell her about her mom?

“Why are your faces like that?” Nat asked slowly, looking between Dustin and Eddie. Only then did Eddie realize Dustin looked suddenly ill.

“Well,” Dustin started, but Eddie cut him off.

“Why don’t you go home, Dust? Take a shower, sleep in a real bed.” He took a step into the room while Nat continued to stare at them suspiciously.

Dustin nodded, gave Nat another big hug, and murmured that he would see her tomorrow.

Eddie sat slowly down on the bed next to Nat. “So, tomorrow, when you get discharged, you’ll come back to my place.” He wasn’t sure how else to say it, other than bluntly.

“Why?”

“Your mom,” Eddie struggled to find the right way to tell her, as he stared at his hands. “Your mom kicked you out.”

He glanced at Nat but found her face was nearly impossible to read. “Oh.”

“But it’s okay, though. We got all your stuff over at my place.” He suddenly wondered if she wouldn’t want to stay with him. “It will be close quarters, but we will be fine.”

“What about Chrissy?”

“Not a factor,” Eddie said simply.

Eddie and Natalie sat in silence for a long moment. “Eddie?”

“Yeah?”

“Do you know why I got kicked out?” she asked quietly.

Eddie looked at her sadly, “Yes. We found your journal. We had to tell someone.”

Nat’s lower lip started to quiver. “So then… you know everything?”

Eddie nodded, and Nat found she couldn’t look at him and turned her head to face away from him..  Part of her felt ridiculous that she felt more upset that this was how Eddie found out about her feelings for him–something that was ruined now. If Eddie suddenly felt any different it would be out of pity.  She tried to blink back the tears but they came anyway.

:”Hey,” Eddie said softly, grabbing her hand, “Look at me.”

Nat slowly turned her head to face Eddie, her eyes red and puffy from crying. Eddie gently wiped away her tears with his thumb and gave her hand a reassuring squeeze.

“I’m sorry,” Nat said, her voice trembling. “I didn’t mean for you to find out like this.”

Eddie smiled softly. “Hey, don’t apologize, you have nothing to be sorry for.  I just wish…I wish I had told you sooner…”

“Tell me what?”  Nat sniffed, confused.

“ I think part of the reason I fell so hard down the Chrissy rabbit hole was because I was trying so hard to ignore how I felt about you.”

Nat’s eyes widened in surprise. “What do you mean?”

Eddie took a deep breath. “What I mean is–I think I had,  have , feelings for you too, Nat. But I buried those feelings down so far because you’ve been trying so hard to get out of Hawkins…I didn’t want to be the reason why you got stuck here”

Nat’s heart skipped a beat. “You… you do?”

Eddie nodded, his eyes meeting hers. “I do.”

A smile slowly spread across Nat’s face as she realized what Eddie was saying, but then her smile faltered a little, “You aren’t just saying that because of what happened are you?”

Eddie shook his head, “I’m sorry I didn’t just tell you, and I’m sorry it took all this for me to pull my head out of my ass and tell you.”

They sat there for a moment, hands intertwined, both feeling the weight of the unspoken feelings they had been carrying for so long finally lifted off their shoulders.

“So, what now?” Nat asked.

Eddie grinned. “Now, we take things one step at a time. We don’t have to rush into anything–once you are ready we will figure it all out.”

Nat smiled back at him. “I like the sound of that.”

Natalie

Nat was grateful when she got to leave the hospital the following afternoon.  Despite everything she was excited to get back to Eddie’s trailer and start trying to heal.  The ride was quiet and being awkward with Eddie was not a familiar feeling, but she knew Eddie was just as nervous as she was.

Right before Eddie turned into the trailer park, she heard him swear under his breath.

“What?” She asked, glancing at him.

“Nothing, I was just thinking I should have come back this morning while you were sleeping and gotten the place cleaned up a little bit.  And got your stuff put away–I didn’t want you coming home to a pile of your stuff in boxes.”

“It’s okay,” Nat reassured him, “Really, we can get everything put away later.”

As they got closer to Eddie’s trailer Nat’s anxiety started to gnaw at her gut, despite reminding herself that she had Eddie had practically lived together up until a month or so ago, but now with their feelings out in the open, everything was different.

“What the–” Eddie’s voice pulled her out of her thoughts as they pulled into the parking spot in front of the trailer.  Nat couldn’t believe she hadn’t noticed the balloons until now.

“Dustin.” They said in unison, grinning at eachother.

Sure enough, Dustin and the others were waiting outside with Eddie’s Uncle Wayne.

“Welcome home!” Dustin practically bounced to the van and opened Nat’s door and pulled her out.

“Thanks, Dustin.”

“Hey kid, long time no see” Uncle Wayne greeted Nat warmly and pulled her in for a quick hug.

“Can we go inside now?” Dustin asked excitedly.

Uncle Wayne chucked, “The boy has a big surprise for you and Nat.” he patted Eddie on the shoulder and steered him to the front door.

“Gareth and Jeff helped too!” Dustin ran ahead of them and opened the door .“And Mike. They wanted to be here to welcome you home but Waybe was worried about it being too overwhelming.”

Nat quietly agreed, while her eyes scanned the trailer. One of the first things Nat noticed was that the trailer was spotless, not that it was dirty, but Wayne worked long, hard hours, and Eddie was…well, Eddie.

“I figured since this was your place now too, we should get our act together,” Wayne explained as Nat looked around.

“You didn’t have to,” Nat said sincerely.  Even at its worst, the trailer was always more comforting and felt like home more than her own did.

“Come on,” Dustin said excitedly, as he grabbed Nat’s hand and pulled her back to Eddie’s room. Nat grabbed Eddie's hand as she brushed past him, grinning.

“Are you ready?” Dustin asked, hand on the doorknob to the bedroom.

“To see my own room?  The room I’ve lived in for the past 10 years? I think I’m ready.” Eddie asked, rolling his eyes.

“I get the feeling you aren’t ready,” Dustin replied, vibrating with excitement.

“Well, I’m ready.” Nat laughed, “Open it on up.”

As Nat looked around, she noticed that everything had been organized and tidied up. The clothes that were once piled up in a corner were now folded and hung up, and the posters that once hung crookedly on the wall were now straight and even. The closet door which could never close due to its contents perpetually spilling from it was latched firmly in place.  Eddie’s bed which was just a mattress on the floor was now an actual bed, with extra space underneath for their things. Along the far wall, she noticed an army cot was neatly made up.

Nat felt a sense of warmth and gratitude wash over her as she realized how much effort Wayne, Dustin, and the others had put into making her new home feel welcoming and comfortable.

“Wow, this is amazing,” Nat said, turning to Wayne and Dustin with a smile. “Thank you so much for doing all of this.”

“Of course,” Wayne replied, smiling back at her. “We wanted to make sure you felt at home here.”

“It’s definitely homier,” Eddie added, chuckling. “Thanks, guys.”

Dustin beamed with pride at their reactions, clearly happy to have helped out. “Glad you like it,” he said.

Nat felt a sense of contentment wash over her–she felt like she was finally home.

[apocalypticdemon]

got this a few days ago but was in academic paper hell, so i'm sorry for the delay! thanks for the tag, @clandestinegardenias and @sunlaire!

do you make your bed? i definitely should, and i absolutely do not lol

what's your favorite number? i've had a personal fondness for 13 ever since i was a kid, but i also really enjoy the number 117. for nerd reasons

what is my job? that's. a moving target tbh. during the school year, i worked as a TA at my university, while working weekends at a coffee shop as a baker. now that it's summer, i'm going to have to get a second job, but the jury's still out on what that's going to be.

if you could go back to school would you? i am currently in school, and i'm hoping to get a PhD, so i don't think i'll be going back to school right now, lol. but in a hypothetical future, just to do whatever? absolutely. i would get another bachelors in neuroscience or some other field of biology, probably for medical research.

can you parallel park? absolutely. but i fuckin hate it, lol, and being on the road makes me nervous, so i avoid it at all costs. but i can do it

a job you had that would surprise people? dunno if i have anything in my history that has been surprising. i guess the lab technician one is kind of the outlier.

do you think aliens are real? yeah, but it's probably microbial life of some sort.

can you drive a manual car? i learned the basics, but all i can really do is drive in circles in a parking lot in second gear. my mom tried to get me to drive it on the road and i got scared, lol, so i never fully learned how to do it.

what's your guilty pleasure? honestly it's TV from the 70s. begrudgingly i have to admit i like CHiPs. Emergency! is a non-guilty pleasure, though. love that one with my whole heart. but a lot of older stuff has some... pretty not great politics involved, but i still really enjoy them. also have to admit that i really like those terrible Dan Brown movie adaptations, lol

tattoos? i want at least 3 and have plans, but i haven't found an artist yet to get them. but i don't have any as of yet.

favorite color? tbh it depends on my mood. the goth in me says that it's a deep burgundy or a velvety black, but really deep greens or very vivid sky blue is also very good. saturated jewel tones as a color class are my jam, i guess.

favorite type of music? this is a cruel question to ask me. i have so many. i've been on a real rammstein/alt metal/nu-metal kick lately, but i also really go for folk, hard rock, prog rock, and 1980s new wave music. but i'll listen to just about anything. if i'm going for orchestral music, i have to say minimalism all the way. i adore the work of philip glass and arvo part

do you like puzzles? absolutely, in any form. jigsaw puzzles are really soothing and engaging, but i also adore puzzle games. i've revisited the Portal franchise lately, and i have a game series called The Room (not the movie...) that's only a series of puzzles. they can be frustrating, but i adore them

any phobias? i am a deeply anxious person, but i am petrified of fire. it's kind of unreasonable. bugs and germs also make me lock up really hard, too, even though i can rationalize my way through them. but all of them freak me out really badly.

favorite childhood sport? oh it was definitely competitive swimming. soccer was really really fun, but i miss being on the swim team. though i did like 5 sports growing up and truly would just love to have joints that would let me do any of them again

do you talk to yourself? oh yeah. internal and external monologue, baby. my college friends got to be on a call yesterday and listen to me talk my way through editing papers, lol. i talk to myself while doing laundry, cleaning, just walking through the house or from my car to my place. truly, i never shut up

what movie(s) do you adore? there are a lot, honestly. Castle in the Sky, Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind, Crimson Peak, Pacific Rim, The Nice Guys, and For A Few Dollars More are probably the movies i've watched the most. also literally any Dan Bluth film. the animation is always so gorgeous

coffee or tea? definitely tea. i love herbal teas, but i can't do caffeine, so like. there are only so many things i can drink now, lol

first thing you wanted to be growing up? paleontologist. hands down. i wanted to be a paleontologist from age like 6 until 15 or 16. then i had to do a research project on what jobs are growing and found out there aren't many job openings. so i pivoted to music. and then music academia. lol. lmao (i say it cynically, but i genuinely love what i'm doing, it's just funny to me)

this was lengthy, but if you want to participate, consider yourself tagged!